Initial work on Hurlburt overpass on track

A crew lays sod in the median on U.S. Highway 98 where a temporary gate will open to Hurlburt Field while the fly-over is being constructed.

NICK TOMECEK / Daily News

By LAUREN SAGE REINLIE / Daily News

Published: Thursday, May 30, 2013 at 06:57 PM.

HURLBURT FIELD — If all continues to go well, construction of the overpass on U.S. Highway 98 at the entrance to Hurlburt Field could begin in mid-July, officials said.

Initial work on the project that began in January is on schedule.

The $13.9 million project will build two two-lane bridges on U.S. 98 over Cody Avenue at the main entrance to Hurlburt Field.

The project was designed to decrease traffic at the intersection, which has become increasingly congested as Hurlburt’s population has grown to about 10,000 active-duty and civilian employees.

The entire overpass project is set for completion by the end of 2014.

“We’re very early into this project, but it’s going well so far,” said Ian Satter, a spokesman for District 3 of the state’s Department of Transportation. “We’re just going to hope that the weather continues to cooperate and things keep running smoothly so we can stay on track and get this project done in the allotted time we staged for it.”

Utility relocation and a $430,000 project to open a temporary gate to relieve congestion during construction are already underway.

This week, DOT contractors paved two turn lanes at the Kerwood Road entrance to Hurlburt, just east of the main gate. They were in the process of installing a traffic signal on Thursday.

Westbound motorists coming from Fort Walton Beach and Destin, which account for about a quarter of the base’s traffic, will be able to enter Hurlburt at the Kerwood gate before they reach the construction area.

The gate should open shortly before construction on the overpass begins, said Keith Cutshaw, chief of engineering for the Air Force’s 1st Special Operations Civil Engineer Squadron at Hurlburt.

It will likely be open only during peak traffic hours.

Utility companies are also working to move any equipment required to make room for the overpass. Okaloosa County Water and Sewer are set to begin their relocation soon, Satter said.

After all the utilities have been relocated, construction can begin.

“Prior to us starting our road work, we’ve got to move those utilities,” Satter said. “Then we can start with the next phase of the project.”

In addition to the temporary gate access, Hurlburt is working to reroute all commercial traffic to the back entrance on Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard.

That could pull about 300 to 400 vehicles out of the U.S. 98 and Cody Avenue intersection each day.

The plan requires construction of an inspection pit and a new guard station at the back entrance.

An environmental assessment completed in March found no issues and the project is now set to go out for bid within the next two weeks, Cutshaw said.

It could be complete by next spring at the earliest.

When planners began working on the back gate project they were hoping to have it done by the time overpass construction began, but the approval process took longer than originally expected, he said.

“With the environmental assessment and everything that had to be completed it just wasn’t feasible,” he said.

Hurlburt officials said the project has been going well overall.

Dan Wilcoxen, military construction manager for the 1st Special Operations Engineer Squadron, has been working closely with the contractors.

“They are extremely willing to work with the installation and make sure we’re happy and that DOT is happy with the final product,” he said.

HURLBURT FIELD — If all continues to go well, construction of the overpass on U.S. Highway 98 at the entrance to Hurlburt Field could begin in mid-July, officials said.

Initial work on the project that began in January is on schedule.

The $13.9 million project will build two two-lane bridges on U.S. 98 over Cody Avenue at the main entrance to Hurlburt Field.

The project was designed to decrease traffic at the intersection, which has become increasingly congested as Hurlburt’s population has grown to about 10,000 active-duty and civilian employees.

The entire overpass project is set for completion by the end of 2014.

“We’re very early into this project, but it’s going well so far,” said Ian Satter, a spokesman for District 3 of the state’s Department of Transportation. “We’re just going to hope that the weather continues to cooperate and things keep running smoothly so we can stay on track and get this project done in the allotted time we staged for it.”

Utility relocation and a $430,000 project to open a temporary gate to relieve congestion during construction are already underway.

This week, DOT contractors paved two turn lanes at the Kerwood Road entrance to Hurlburt, just east of the main gate. They were in the process of installing a traffic signal on Thursday.

Westbound motorists coming from Fort Walton Beach and Destin, which account for about a quarter of the base’s traffic, will be able to enter Hurlburt at the Kerwood gate before they reach the construction area.

The gate should open shortly before construction on the overpass begins, said Keith Cutshaw, chief of engineering for the Air Force’s 1st Special Operations Civil Engineer Squadron at Hurlburt.

It will likely be open only during peak traffic hours.

Utility companies are also working to move any equipment required to make room for the overpass. Okaloosa County Water and Sewer are set to begin their relocation soon, Satter said.

After all the utilities have been relocated, construction can begin.

“Prior to us starting our road work, we’ve got to move those utilities,” Satter said. “Then we can start with the next phase of the project.”

In addition to the temporary gate access, Hurlburt is working to reroute all commercial traffic to the back entrance on Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard.

That could pull about 300 to 400 vehicles out of the U.S. 98 and Cody Avenue intersection each day.

The plan requires construction of an inspection pit and a new guard station at the back entrance.

An environmental assessment completed in March found no issues and the project is now set to go out for bid within the next two weeks, Cutshaw said.

It could be complete by next spring at the earliest.

When planners began working on the back gate project they were hoping to have it done by the time overpass construction began, but the approval process took longer than originally expected, he said.

“With the environmental assessment and everything that had to be completed it just wasn’t feasible,” he said.

Hurlburt officials said the project has been going well overall.

Dan Wilcoxen, military construction manager for the 1st Special Operations Engineer Squadron, has been working closely with the contractors.

“They are extremely willing to work with the installation and make sure we’re happy and that DOT is happy with the final product,” he said.